the apron - the westin wall centre, vancouver airport

a preview of the innovative desserts fit for royalty being offered spring 2011. chocolate & dirt in a flower pot saucer!

i was looking for a restaurant that was spacious yet cozy so that we could enjoy a meal with my 96 grandfather where he could hear the conversation. this was an excellent spot for lunch. i had carrot and coconut soup and the presentation was beautiful, with the condiments in the bowl and a soup poured at the table so that you get all of the aroma of the herbs being hit with the heat of the soup. i also had a salad that was very tasty with nice fresh greens and a tangy balsamic house dressing. tea was served in a silver teapot, with enough hot water for me to not have to constantly ask for more. i think dinner there would be even more elegant than lunch was. a table mates had the salmon sandwich and side salads. all meals had good presentation and were good portions for lunch. biggest issue was getting to the restaurant, you have to get across sea island way quickly to be able to go down corvette. google let us down with the direction of “continue straight” when what it really meant was merge into sea island way and immediately go right. my advice is to look at a map before you go and you’ll be fine. parking was plentiful and easy.

while dining out at an airport hotel is not usually considered by local vancouverites, the apron could certainly change your mind.  located within the westin wall centre in richmond,  is the on-site restaurant focusing on contemporary pacific northwest cuisine with artful presentation.

traveling a bit further, kiely and i drove to the westin wall centre for its restaurant, the apron. my serving of the sous vide pork belly was mostly fat, which i didn’t enjoy at all. kiely’s was much meatier. although, the parsnip puree and cider jus underneath the pork belly were really tasty.

too bland. not enough flavour in the food.

i came by here for breakfast one saturday morning because, let’s face it, there’s not a whole lot of non-chinese breakfast options in richmond.  if you’re not planning on having dim sum, you’re almost all out of luck.

a real delight. first time dining at this restaurant and it exceeded all our expectations (food and service).

we started off with a crisp dungeness crab cakes; it was so tasty! beautifully seasoned and the combination of salad and crab cakes were just perfect. the portion size was decent and i wouldn't hesitate to order this again next time!

for our mains, we had the wild pacific sockeye salmon and the deep coastal black cod. food was fresh, served in generous portions, both our fish were had crispy skin and perfectly cooked. again, it was well seasoned but not overpowering. it was fantastic!

as for dessert we decided on the apron chocolate bar and the white out. the chocolate bar was heavenly made that came with salted caramel ice cream, almond crumble and coco crisp. the white out featured a buttermilk panna cotta torchon, vanilla bean gelato and white chocolate and orange brulee. going back and forth on these sweets was so much fun! if i wasn't full already, i want to try out their other desserts too.

the service was fabulous, our waitress, christina was not intrusive but was polite, attentive and catered to our every needs.

overall it was a real treat to have dined at the apron tonight. i cannot wait to revisit this place again!

how do you feel about science and food? a kind of new introduction into the food world is molecular gastronomy. some people are skeptical about mixing science with food but actually science and food has always been intertwined. without science how else would people be able to cook with such great kitchen stoves, ovens, blenders, torches, etc.? or maybe that is just an unrelated argument. anyways, there is a small restaurant at the westin wall in richmond called the apron that serves molecular gastronomy food. appetizers butternut squash soup  vegetable appetizer: beets, black pudding, pine mushroom, veal marrow in an almond vinaigrette not sure where the molecular gastronomy part is. assorted vegetables  this appetizer was actually kind of fun. what i mean is the blown mozzarella (the deflated white thing on the left). when you bite into it, it's airy and deflates very quickly into normal cheese taste in the mouth. there's also eggplant puree and greens. eggplant puree and blown mozzar

better. i have eaten here lots in the past and it is getting better by not taking itself so seriously with high end cuisine. i love high end cuisine but not in an airport hotel where i get in late/leave early and just want simple but good food. really enjoyed the pizza and wings last night, a cut above what you find in most airport hotels.


-----17 oct, 2010-----

i eat here when i stay at the hotel and it's ok but i would not make a special trip to eat here.

i always attend dine out vancouver every year, and this year was no exception. however this year, nothing really intrigued me except this one restaurant: the apron.

the apron. just had the pork puffs wow it was killer.
the salty and spicy sauce went very well with my beer!

great chef great food. the apron restaurant
3099 corvette way, richmond
tel: 604-303-6565
web: http://www.westinvancouverairport.com/dining
details: complimentary valet parking available, also offers a 5, 7, and 9 tasting menu. located inside the westin wall centre vancouver airport hotel.

it's a modern, casual bistro feeling restaurant (versus fine dining) with a bar area and also serves more simple cuisine. we saw a burger and pizza being served at the bar that also looked very tasty.

we went to the apron restaurant last night and it was very memorable. we had the tasting menu and all the dishes we had were excellent. the real stand outs were the:

- sunchoke soup. we love sunchoke. it was beautifully presented in the bowl with an amazing stock served separately.
- puffed foie gras with apple quince puree demonstrated executive chef hamid's passion for molecular gastronomy which transformed foie, which can be heavy, to something amazingly light and flavourful. the texture is unlike any other foie dish we have experienced before. we are fans of foie and have had it in many restaurants in canada and europe including france and spain. the warm house-made brioche was delicious.
- pan-roasted scallop with an aromatic coconut curry froth and basmati rice was a concert of spice, rich flavour and texture. the scallop was perfectly cooked with great carmelization. we rarely find restaurants who can cook them to this standard. an unbelievable dish.
- lobster with the house-made gnocchi and morels was sublime; the sauce so delicious you will want bread to help you get every last drop. it takes hours to create a sauce so intense.
- salmon was slow cooked and moist with very a flavourful house-made chorizo with roasted peppers, olives and fennel.
- braised lamb with couscous, red bean puree, grilled scallions & dry lime parsley foam offered a variety of textures and unusual flavours that worked well together.
- shattered baklava with pistachio ice cream and peaches. we loved the crispy texture of the deconstructed baklava. it was light and tasty without the traditional heavy sugar/honey syrup.

chef hamid is focussed on sourcing the best local products whenever possible. we located a posting online from someone at vancouverfoodster.com/tag/executive-chef-hamid-salimian and you will find pics of a similar menu to what we had. the food is truly edible art.

many restaurants have forgotten that sauces, reductions, etc. are accompaniments to compliment a dish and are essential for a full experience. it is labour intensive and requires creativity and planning. we would rather have less and have these accompaniments as this is what moves the dining experience to the next level. we have had the pleasure of dining in some top-ranked restaurants in the world and the food executive chef hamid salimian is preparing is of this level.

if you want artful presentation, molecular gastronomy/innovation, excellent flavour and thoughtful execution, we highly recommend you try award-winning executive chef hamid's food at the apron. we believe he is one of the best chefs in vancouver!

after the pork, we had truffle poprcorn. you couldn’t really taste the truffle flavor in the popcorn, and i admit that i’m not the biggest popcorn fan so i could be a poor judge of this dish. regardless, at the very least, i can say that my photography skills are improving.

i went here on a friends recommendation and i wasn't disappointed. the service was excellent and the tastes i encountered were challenging and delicious. i'll be back soon, perhaps for lunch!

the apron sometimes i get lucky and i get invited to try out new restaurants; it is really nice to get something after all these years of blogging. i went to a restaurant named the apron which was located in the richmond, westin hotel. the interior was si